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Degrassi High
thumb|300px|right Degrassi High was the third television show in the Degrassi series of teen dramas about the lives of a group of kids living on or near Degrassi Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It first aired in 1989-1990, and followed the kids from The Kids of Degrassi Street and Degrassi Junior High through high school. Degrassi High was rebranded to Degrassi, Old School when it began to broadcast on The-N in the United States. It dealt with issues ranging from AIDS, abuse, alcoholism, cheating, sex, death and suicide, dating, depression, bullying, abortion, gay rights, racism, the environment, drugs, sexism, and eating disorders. Many hail the series as a classic for being a realistic and often raw portrayal of teen life. Episode List Season 1 |01-02 A New Start: When Erica misses her period after a summer fling, she fears she may be pregnant. She doesn't want to have a baby, but she is opposed to abortion. This hour long special explores what happens when a teenager's code of ethics comes into conflict with a practical reality. Meanwhile, Joey meets his old nemesis, Dwayne, who decides to bring back outlawed initiation - especially for Joey, Snake and Wheels. Simon's new-found celebrity as poster-boy for Dude Jeans causes trouble for his girlfriend Alexa. |03 Breaking Up is Hard to Do: When Michelle's parents split up, she is forced to choose between them - but neither choice seems right. B.L.T. is the only one she has to turn to, but her father forbids her to see him. Someone has begun a hate campaign against Erica. The Zits (formerly the Zit Remedy) enlist Lucy's help to make a rock video - but Lucy soon quits because Joey was going to film girls in bikinis. |04 Dream On: Arthur develops a huge crush on Caitlin - and it looks like he might even have a chance, since she doesn't seem to be all that close to Joey any more. He dreams of romance and candlelight dinners - how come he always gets interrupted just when he gets to the good part? It looks like it might finally be Kathleen's turn for romance, too. And the guy's in at least Grade eleven! |05 Everybody Wants Something: Lucy finally agrees to shoot The Zits' video - if they can all agree on a script, persuade Clutch to lend them his car, coax Lucy into shooting it with Clutch around… Life is almost perfect for Joey - he'll deal with the small problem of Caitlin just as soon as the video's done. The hate campaign against Erica escalates, and Erica is determined to find out who is putting pamphlets and slogans on her locker. |06 Nobody's Perfect: Kathleen's dreams are coming true. Scott is the perfect boyfriend - considerate, affectionate, even gives her flowers. She can forgive him if he's kind of hot tempered - he's got a lot of troubles at home, and really, she deserves it when he gets upset with her. Liz encourages Spike to go out with a boy for the first time since Emma was born, and she's so nervous she almost blows it. |07 Just Friends: Heather thinks Wheels is really cute, and figures if she throws a party, gets the lights low, and Wheels alone, everything will fall into place. Melanie, Kathleen and Diana welcome Maya into their gang, but when they decide to go to a movie, they're pretty sure Maya won't mind if she's not invited, since they don't think her wheelchair can get into the theatre. Lucy visits L.D. in hospital where she is undergoing tests. |08 Little White Lies: Diana is determined to grow up, but her older brother, left with the task of bringing her up after their father died, is so old-fashioned. And Yick, the object of her affections, is going to be at Melanie's party. How will Diana's brother ever know she went? Joey, Snake and Wheels decide it's time they expanded their horizons a little and attend a strip show. But, as always with The Zits, things don't go quite the way they were planned. |09-10 Sixteen Part One and Two: Michelle finds her father impossible to live with, but now that she's sixteen she can legally move out, if only she had the money. Of course, there is that family ring she got for her birthday. Spike is nervous about how fond Patrick is becoming of her - she just doesn't want to get hurt. Joey and Snake are excited about starting driving lessons. |11 All in Good Cause: Caitlin and Claude want to do something to protest against a factory involved in nuclear missiles. The peace group they belong to advises them to cool it, but they can't just stand by and let it go on. The Grade Nine classes are competing to raise money for Unicef, but the way it's going, it looks like Arthur, Yick and the gang are going to lose and have to be the slaves of 9B for a week. Arthur's got enough trouble now battling the image of a nerd without being a slave too |12 Natural Attractions: When Erica starts seeing a new boy, it frightens Heather. One abortion was bad enough, but what if she goes too far again? Heather has to come to terms with her own guilt at having supported Erica. Alison says she's giving up on her campaign to win Snake, but when he invites Alison's best friend Amy to the dance, the claws come out. Scooter suddenly notices that his pal Tessa is (gasp!) a girl! |13 Testing 1...2...3: Joey's school problems have not let up, and now that he's in high school, he's finding it more difficult than ever to keep up. The tests indicate that he has dysgraphia, and Joey figures if he's going to be some kind of moron, he might as well drop out. Caitlin is terrified about her upcoming court appearance, and Claude is no help at all. Yankou gets hold of last year's science exam. |14 It Creeps!: Lucy becomes director and writer of her first film: a feminist horror flick starring the Zits, Simon and Caitlin, with Alexa, Tim and Heather as crew. But the film that's playing in Lucy's mind is a far cry from the one that's unfolding in the empty Saturday morning corridors of the school. Spike is nervous when Shane starts hanging around the school watching her. |15 Stressed Out a.k.a Season Finale: Caitlin is devastated when Ms Avery is reassigned to be a roving teacher and decides she'd rather quit teaching altogether. Michelle, determined to prove to her father that she can cope on her own, working and going to school, starts taking caffeine pills to extend her study time. Snake is suffering from a mysterious ailment that won't seem to go away. Season 2 |16 Bad Blood, Part One: Condom machines have been installed in the school washrooms, and as Lucy records reactions with her video camera, Dwayne finds an interesting new use for the condoms -as water bombs to drop on Joey, Wheels and Snake. Joey, however, is more concerned with raising money to put a down payment on a muscle car, and takes bets that he will walk through the cafeteria - wearing nothing but a hat. B.L.T. has trouble breaking up with Michelle. Dwayne receives a frightening phone call from his summer girlfriend. To be continued…. |17 Bad Blood, Part Two: Joey and Dwayne's enmity has escalated since Joey found out that it was Dwayne who turned him in for walking naked in the cafeteria, and Joey is determined to get Dwayne back. AIDS speakers at Degrassi during Sexual Awareness Week make the illness chillingly personal - especially for Dwayne, who becomes increasingly withdrawn as he awaits the results of his HIV test. Michelle finds out the real reason B.L.T. broke up with her. |18 Loyalties: Michelle, B.L.T., Simon and Alexa were always the fabulous four, but now that Michelle and B.L.T. have broken up and B.L.T. has a new girlfriend, Cindy, Alexa's loyalties are divided. Snake develops a crush on Michelle, but she's just not ready for it. Caitlin, planning a fancy dinner for her parent's twentieth anniversary, discovers her father is seeing another woman. |19 A Tangled Web: Wheels' lies to his grandmother become more elaborate as each tops the one before, and when he's grounded for his marks, Wheels concocts another story so he can go to a concert with Joey and Snake. Caitlin becomes increasingly upset about her father's infidelity, but discovers that her mother already knows about it. Alex doesn't know what to do about his crush on Tessa. |20 Body Politics: Lucy, who's feeling unpopular, is thrilled when good-looking Dale invites her to the dance. The girl's volleyball team, however, is upset that the boys' basketball team is getting preferential treatment. Lucy is all set to fight, until she discovers that Dale is the captain of the boys' team. When Patrick, who has broken up with Spike, invites Liz out, Spike is surprised to find that she's jealous. Alexa tries to make up with Michelle. |21 Crossed Wires: When Tim tries to kiss Liz good night after a date, it reawakens her long-ago memories of sexual abuse, but it's just not something she can talk about, not even to her best friend Spike. Alex thinks he wants to kiss Tessa, but he's not sure whether she wants him to. Joey feels pressured with Wheels living in his house. Dwayne's friends can't understand what's bothering him - and Joey's the only one who knows. |22 The All-Nighter: Melanie's surprise sleepover for Diana's birthday promises to hold more than one surprise when Kathleen finds some marijuana. Hoping to bring his two best friends together, Yick persuades Luke to invite Arthur to a poker game. Joey decides to join "the nerds" for poker - anything to get away from Wheels, who's driving him crazy. Alex must pull an all-nighter in order to get an assignment done on time. |23 Home Sweet Home: Wheels wears out his welcome at Joey's house when he steals money from Mrs. Jeremiah. But his Grandma won't have him back, his reputation has preceded him to Snake's house. It's pouring rain. Where will he sleep? Michelle, worn down by job, school and partying roommates considers moving back to her father's house. But will she be able to stand his rules? |24 Extracurricular Activities: When Lucy, Heather and Erica hear the rumour that their favourite band, The Savages, is making a rock video at the school, nothing will stop them from sneaking in to see them - not even the fact that Lucy's boyfriend Bronco could get into trouble. Joey and Snake's campaign plans are abruptly changed when they also discover the band is at Degrassi. Caitlin's parents ask her to come home so they can talk. |23 Show Time, Part One: Auditions are being held for Talent Night, and the acts range from dramatic poetry to singing hats. Joey is struggling with science - it's clear he's going to need some help. Alexa is thinking of breaking up with Simon. But the whole school is thrown into turmoil when a student commits suicide at school - especially Caitlin, since the student is her ex-boyfriend, Claude. To be continued…. |24 Show Time, Part Two: Life begins to go on at Degrassi, but should they go through with Talent Night? Snake is beginning to feel better after his discovery of Claude's body. Joey still desperately needs help with science, and Mr. Webster has set him up with a tutor - Caitlin. Joey's apprehensive enough, what with his history with her, but when he gets to her house, he finds that she's still suffering the effects of Claude's suicide. |25 Three's a Crowd: Snake invites Spike to the graduation formal, but then Michelle - who he'd really rather go with - invites him. What's a guy to do? Tessa is becoming bored with Alex, and wants to dump him, but she doesn't want to hurt his feelings. What's a girl to do? Amy and Alison are desperate for dates to the formal, but only a senior will do. |26 One Last Dance: Dwayne must deal with his feelings about being HIV-positive and with the reactions of other students once his secret gets out. Lucy is keen to follow the footsteps of boyfriend Bronco into the school presidency. Joey contemplates asking Caitlin to the semi-formal. Suddenly the year's last dance takes on new significance when the news comes out. It's not just the year's last dance. It's Degrassi's last dance. |27-28 School's Out, Part One and Two a.k.a Series Finale: Despite desperate attempts to keep the old gang together Joey, Snake, Wheels, Caitlin, Lucy, Spike and others head in different directions as temperatures rise, the summer after graduation. Meanwhile Joey Jeremiah spends the best summer of his life in a love triangle. Caitlin is not immediately ready to support his desire to lose his virginity but Tessa is! Meanwhile, buddies Snake and Wheels have their own concerns. Lifeguard Snake, convinced that to 'get laid' all he has to do is rescue a beautiful girl, finds his aquatic skills unexpectedly tested when a 'tipsy' canoe ride turns traumatic. Mechanic Wheels' ride to freedom becomes his vehicle to confinement after a drinking and driving accident leave Lucy no longer able to boast "My future's so bright I gotta wear shades." Trivia * Many of the actors had had no previous experience acting and were cast because of their realistic appearance. * The school colors were blue and purple... * Everybody's favorite bands during the 5 year run of Degrassi Junior High/''Degrassi High'' were the fictional rock bands The Savages and Gourmet Scum, and real-life Irish rockers The Pogues. * Neil Hope who played Derek "Wheels" Wheeler had to play a teenager who loses his parents in a car accident. In real life, Hope lost his father a couple of months prior to shooting the funeral scene and struggled to keep from crying throughout. * In the TV-movie following the Degrassi High series, Degrassi: School's Out, Snake (Brogen) and Caitlin (Mistysyn) were the first to swear on a Canadian network. They both said the word "fucking". * Mastroianni had said he would never return to the world of Degrassi, but promptly did so when Degrassi: The Next Generation premiered. He has been a regular feature since the early episodes. * Amanda Stepto was asked in a 1999 reunion show if that was her real life hair style which 'Spike' had throughout the series, she answered yes but had said she wanted to change it by the end. External links *Episode Guide for Degrassi High *Pat Mastroianni's Official Website *Unofficial Degrassi Fan Site *Official Degrassi: New Generation Web Site